Falafel

I heart falafel! The fried chickpea balls are perfectly crunchy on the outside and nice and soft on the inside.  I don’t make these that often because cleaning the oily mess from frying is not, by any means fun…but it’s so worth it when I do!  Serving falafel in a pita with hummus, tomato, onion, and tahini sauce makes a delectable lunch...yum!

Simple rules for making perfect falafel:

•  DO NOT use canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
• Soak the dried chickpeas for at least 24 hours.
•  Do not add water when grinding the chickpeas or else you will have a case of exploding balls or collapsing falafel.
•  Grind the chickpea until they are puréed and they hold together in a ball.
• Rest the batter before you fry.
• Fry the chickpea balls in hot oil, 350 degrees

Falafel

Makes 24 falafel balls

8 ounces dried chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

4 ounces finely chopped onion

2 teaspoons minced garlic

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cayenne

¼ teaspoon black pepper

½ teaspoon baking soda

Vegetable oil for deep frying

Tahini sauce

1/2 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoons olive oil

¼  cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon parsley, finely chopped

Soak chickpeas in water for at least 24 hours. Rinse and drain chickpeas.  Spread the chickpeas on a dish towel to dry.  Set aside.

Combine tahini, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and kosher salt in a small bowl.  If too thick, add a tablespoon of water at a time until desired consistency.  Stir in the parsley.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. 

Place the chickpeas, onions, garlic, parsley, cilantro, cumin, coriander, salt, cayenne, black pepper and baking soda in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process until chickpeas is thoroughly puréed and forms a smooth batter.   Set aside and let the batter rest for 30 minutes. 

Form the dough into balls using a tablespoon of batter. Let the balls rest for 30 minutes. (Falafel may be made ahead to this point.)

Heat oil in deep saucepan over medium heat, and deep-fry balls until crisp and golden. When done, balls float to surface. Remove from heat, and drain on paper towels before serving.

Cut the pita bread in half.  Spread the pita pocket with hummus; add falafels, tomatoes, onions, and lettuce. Drizzle with tahini sauce.

Serve immediately.